Notre Dame Club of Staten Island primed for 23rd annual Bread of Life Drive (photos)

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Notre Dame -- the name conjures up an array of associations, from the fabled fight song, to Knute Rockne to "Win one for the Gipper" to Touchdown Jesus and the Golden Dome.

However, there's far more to the Fighting Irish than gridiron greatness.

This Friday and Saturday, members of the Notre Dame Club of Staten Island will put the finishing touches on their 23rd annual Bread of Life Drive (BOLD).

Donations will be collected from 125 schools on Staten Island (and six in Brooklyn). The thousands upon thousands of items will be taken to Monsignor Farrell High School, where club members and volunteers will sort and repackage them for distribution to the food pantries of 25 not-for-profits across the borough. 

BEGAN IN 1992 

While food drives are conducted regularly on Staten Island, this one is unique. The Bread of Life Drive has its origins in 1992, when the Rev. Edward Malloy, then president of the university, asked each alumni club to give a "gift" to its community -- in the name of Notre Dame -- to mark the university's 150th anniversary.

Members of the club, led by Joe Delaney and Dr. Robert Griswold, decided to collect food for the needy and called their effort the "Bread of Life Drive." That first year, seven schools were involved and three local organizations were the beneficiaries.

That one-year "gift" has turned into an annual tradition, and the number of schools participating, volunteers helping and organizations benefiting have all increased tremendously.

It's a story with a happy ending; however, the story is far from over.

The success of the drive and the desperate need of so many Americans -- nearly 50 million don't know where their next meal is coming from -- caught the attention of the university as well as its former head football coach, Lou Holtz. Using the Island club's drive as a model, Holtz, through his foundation, reached out to his former players, a group affectionately known as "Lou's Lads," and asked them if they, in association with their local clubs, could do something similar.

As a result, there were Bread of Life drives last weekend in Pennsylvania, Connecticut and other locales, and this weekend, similar efforts will be mounted from coast to coast.

In addition to the Island BOLD, there will be a BOLD in South Bend, Ind., as well as another in Orange County, California. A number of Lou's Lads who live in areas without alumni clubs plan to go door-to-door collecting food.

Randy Kinder, a star running back for Holtz, became aware of the drive three years ago. Kinder, who now works for the AFL-CIO Investment Trust Corp., following a successful career with the NFL's Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles, learned about the drive from Vinny Alverez, president of the New York City Labor Council, and a Farrell alumnus. 

'NO-BRAINER' 

Members of Alverez's union had been volunteering at the drive. Once Kinder visited the Island and saw the work being done, he brought it to the board of "Lou's Lads," and Kinder said the decision to get involved was a "no-brainer."

When the idea was pitched to Holtz himself, Kinder said he "loved it." Kinder added, "This is something that will be a true legacy, and it ties in Lou's Lads with the clubs and the community." 

A PRIMER 

To help interested clubs get started, Delaney from the Staten Island club, and Barry Ryan, from the Harrisburg, assembled a primer that tells members everything they need to know to get a drive up and running -- and the Staten Island Bread of Life Drive is the model.

On the West Coast, Oscar McBride, a tight end for Holtz and a former NFL player, said, "When I heard about it, I knew I had to do something." While Orange County is a fairly affluent area, McBride was stunned to discover how many families stood in need of help.

As the football coach at Tesoro High School, McBride recruited his players and set up a friendly competition with nearby El Toro High School. He's planning to have at least five schools involved next year and is hoping his drive follows the same growth curve as the Island's.

In Harrisburg, the club members are holding their fourth drive, and they take a slightly different approach. Barry Ryan, who graduated from Notre Dame in 1962 and is a regional director of the alumni association, said they often approach local businesses.

To that end, he has picked up such sponsors as Blue Cross/Blue Shield and the Hershey Creamery Co., as well as local yeshivas.

As a result, BOLD has emerged as the largest food drive agency in central Pennsylvania. Ryan has also gotten clubs in Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Richmond, Va., to sponsor similar drives.

With some 260 active alumni clubs across the nation and more than 112,000 active alumni, this just may be an idea whose time has finally arrived -- and it all started here.

-- Richard T. Ryan is a news reporter for the Advance. He is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and a member of the Staten Island club. He may be reached at ryan@siadvance.com.